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Wednesday, May 20, 2015

ISIS near to total control of Syria’s ancient Palmyra – monitoring group

Islamic State militants have taken control of almost all of the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, a UNESCO landmark, according to a monitoring group. The city was captured after bloody clashes with the Syrian Army on Wednesday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the group had seized almost all of the city, adding that it was not clear what had happened to Syrian forces stationed at a military outpost on its outskirts.

ISIS militants entered Palmyra from the north earlier Wednesday and gained control of a local security office and a school, RT Arabic reported, сiting local sources. According to a correspondent reporting from Homs, there were clashes between the Syrian army and ISIS in the northern part of Palmyra, and the militants intensified shelling government forces' positions.